Cecil Lee Upshaw Jr. (October 22, 1942 – February 7, 1995) was an
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
professional baseball
Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world.
Modern professional ...
right-handed
relief pitcher
In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as inclement weat ...
, who had a nine- year career in
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
(MLB) (1966–1969, 1971–1975), for the
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in Bos ...
and
Houston Astros of the
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...
(NL), and the
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...
,
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...
, and
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...
of the
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...
(AL).
Born in
Spearsville, Louisiana, Upshaw attended
Bossier High School (Louisiana)
Bossier High School is a co-educational college preparatory high school in Bossier City, Louisiana, United States.
Its former building on Colquitt Street, a Classical Revival-style building constructed in 1923, was listed on the National Register ...
and played
college baseball
College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional p ...
at
Centenary College of Louisiana, in Shreveport. He is a member of the Centenary Athletics Hall of Fame. While at Centenary, Upshaw was a member of the
Kappa Sigma
Kappa Sigma (), commonly known as Kappa Sig, is an American collegiate social fraternity founded at the University of Virginia in 1869. Kappa Sigma is one of the five largest international fraternities with currently 318 active chapters and col ...
fraternity.
Upshaw was among the top ten in
saves four times in the National League between 1968 and 1972. He was primarily a sidearm pitcher.
In the Braves’ division-winning campaign, Upshaw had a 6–4
win–loss record
In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of matc ...
, with a 2.91
earned run average
In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...
(ERA), and a career-high 27 saves (to finish second in the league).
Upshaw‘s career was cut short due to an unfortunate incident in 1970. He and two other Braves players were walking down a San Diego sidewalk and one of the other players bet him he could not jump up and touch an overhead awning. Upshaw did reach the awning, but a ring on his pitching hand became caught on a projection sticking out from the awning which tore ligaments in his hand.
He never fully recovered, but was considered one of the better relief pitchers in major league baseball up to that time.
Upshaw was traded four times within a span of two years, including at two consecutive
Winter Meetings
Representatives of all 30 Major League Baseball teams and their 120 Minor League Baseball affiliates convene for four days each December in the Winter Meetings to discuss league business and conduct off-season trades and transactions. Attendees in ...
. First, from the
Braves to the
Astros
The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...
for
Norm Miller on April 22, 1973. Then, from the Astros to the
Indians for
Jerry Johnson on December 3, 1973. He was acquired along with
Chris Chambliss
Carroll Christopher Chambliss (born December 26, 1948) is an American professional baseball player and coach (baseball), coach. He played in Major League Baseball from to for the Cleveland Indians, New York Yankees and Atlanta Braves. He served ...
and
Dick Tidrow
Richard William Tidrow (May 14, 1947 – July 10, 2021) was an American professional baseball pitcher and the senior vice president of player personnel and senior advisor to the general manager for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Basebal ...
by the
Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...
from the Indians for
Fritz Peterson
Fred Ingels Peterson (born February 8, 1942) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) player who played for the New York Yankees, Cleveland Indians, and Texas Rangers from 1966 to 1976. Peterson was a southpaw starting pitcher who enjoy ...
,
Steve Kline,
Fred Beene
Freddy Ray Beene (born November 24, 1942) is an American former professional baseball player. Beene was a right-handed pitcher who played in the Major Leagues between to . He was listed at tall and .
Beene attended Brazosport High School in Fr ...
and
Tom Buskey
Thomas William Buskey (February 20, 1947 – June 7, 1998) was an American Major League Baseball middle relief pitcher. Listed at 6' 3", 200 lb., he batted and threw right handed.
Career
Born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Buskey attended Harris ...
on April 26, 1974. The Yankees were criticized for giving away four pitchers as opposed to the two it got in return and a failure to land a starting second baseman. Finally, from the Yankees to the
White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...
for
Eddie Leon
Eduardo Antonio Leon (born August 11, 1946) is a former Major League Baseball infielder of Mexican American descent, who played for eight seasons, splitting time as a shortstop and second baseman. He played for the Cleveland Indians from 1968 to ...
on December 5, 1974.
Durso, Joseph. "Major Leagues Set Up Expansion Committee," ''The New York Times'', Friday, December 6, 1974.
Retrieved September 27, 2022.
Upshaw finished his career with 87 saves. He had a career ERA of 3.13. Upshaw pitched 563 career innings, in 348 games.
On February 7, 1995, Upshaw died at age 52 as the result of a heart attack in Lawrenceville, Georgia
Lawrenceville is a city in and the county seat of Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States. It is a suburb of Atlanta, located approximately northeast of downtown. As of the 2020 census, the population of Lawrenceville was 30,629. In 2019, the ...
.
References
External links
Cecil Upshaw
at SABR (Baseball BioProject)
Cecil Upshaw
at Pura Pelota (Venezuelan Professional Baseball League)
at The Deadball Era
*
Centenary Athletics
Kappa Sigma Alumni
{{DEFAULTSORT:Upshaw, Cecil
1942 births
1995 deaths
Arizona Instructional League Athletics players
Atlanta Braves players
Austin Braves players
Baseball players from Louisiana
Centenary Gentlemen baseball players
Centenary Gentlemen basketball players
Chicago White Sox players
Cleveland Indians players
Florida Instructional League Reds players
Greenville Braves players
Houston Astros players
Major League Baseball pitchers
New York Yankees players
People from Lawrenceville, Georgia
People from Union Parish, Louisiana
Richmond Braves players
Tigres de Aragua players
Venezuelan Professional Baseball League players by team
West Palm Beach Braves players
American men's basketball players
Sportspeople from the Atlanta metropolitan area